By Alexandra H. Bettis, Richard T. Liu, Jama Pediatrics, October 21, 2019 Depression in adolescence is highly prevalent and associated with negative long-term outcomes.1 Despite decades of research on treatment for adolescent depression, sexual minority youths remain a particularly at-risk group.2 Temporal trends inform progress in addressing the need to eliminate health disparities among sexual minority populations.3 To our knowledge, this study presents the first population-representative...

The Community Resiliency Model Disaster Relief Program Climate change emergencies are real and the human toll during and in the aftermath impact children, teens and adults. This webinar will hear from Kelly Doty, a survivor, who lost her home in Paradise and is working in a community-based program to help the children and their parents in the aftermath. Elaine Miller-Karas, the key developer of the Community Resiliency Model Disaster Relief Program, will explain the program and how it helps...

By Susie Armitage, YR Media, October 16, 2019 When Bree was booked into a juvenile detention center as a teen, they were subject to a strip search. “The staff had to take off my clothes and started patting me down, touching me, and making me feel uncomfortable,” said Bree, who asked that their last name not be used for privacy reasons. As a youth advocate with the Philadelphia-based Juvenile Law Center, Bree recounted their experience of incarceration in a report. “I felt violated, like I...

By Kay Lazar, The Boston Globe, October 15, 2019 Traumatic events and toxic relationships during childhood can cast long shadows, often damaging mental health well into adulthood. But a growing body of research suggests sustained, positive relationships with caring adults can help mitigate the harmful effects of childhood trauma. And specialists say pediatricians, social workers, and others who work with kids should take steps to monitor and encourage those healthy relationships — just as...

By LJ Dawson, Kaiser Health News, October 11, 2019 Every day that Janet van der Laak drives between car dealerships in her sales job, she keeps size 12 shoes, some clothes and a packed lunch — a PB&J sandwich, fruit and a granola bar — beside her in case she sees her 27-year-old son on the streets. “’Jito, come home,” she always tells him, using a Spanish endearment. There he can have a bed and food, but her son, Matt Vinnola, rarely returns home. If he does, it is temporary. The streets...

By Tyrone, Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, October 7, 2019 March 7, 2012 my oldest brother was killed. He was killed by the NOPD (New Orleans Police Department). Coming home from school March 7, 2012, my oldest brother and his friend was sitting outside. They were just chilling and talking. Once he saw my siblings and I get off the school bus, he told us not to come outside until we finished our homework. I told him “OK” and we walked past him to the front door. First thing I remember...

By Carol Roehm, Commercial-News, September 29, 2019 Vermilion County students who are truant or have issues with chronic absenteeism now will have the option of answering to their peers rather than to a courtroom judge. Maria Sermersheim became the new truancy coordinator for the Vermilion County Regional Office of Education on Aug. 13. She also will continue her work as the local Peer Court coordinator. “She brings great experience working with youth in Peer Court,” former truancy officer...

Question Is a childhood history of parental incarceration and juvenile justice involvement associated with mental health conditions in early adulthood? Findings In this nationally representative cross-sectional study, young adults with a history of both parental incarceration and juvenile justice involvement reported more mental health conditions compared with peers with no justice system exposure during childhood. Meaning Parental incarceration and juvenile justice involvement may be...

By Alison J. Culyba, Elizabeth Miller, Steven M. Albert, et al., Jama Network, September 13, 2019 Question How is adult support associated with detailed patterns of violence and risk or protective behavior co-occurrence among male youth in urban neighborhoods? Findings In this cross-sectional study of data from a recently completed randomized clinical trial that included 866 male youths, detailed co-occurrence patterns demonstrated association clusters of sexual violence, youth violence, and...

By Janelle Hawes and Jerry Flores, Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, September 10, 2019 Recently a trial judge in Washington state’s King County Superior Court discussed his three years presiding in juvenile court. Roger Rogoff described this time as “the most emotionally-charged, inspiring and terrifying of my 25-year legal career,” citing the complicated and conflicting nature of the juvenile justice system as well as the tension, apprehension and nuances of decision-making in this...

By Sara Tiano, The Chronicle of Social Change, September 9, 2019 Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris rolled out a criminal justice reform plan Monday that focused heavily on youth justice and child welfare issues. Harris’s plans aligns with several fellow Democrats on proposing reforms to the juvenile justice system, but she is the first in the crowded Democratic primary field to talk about addressing some child welfare issues. A key tenet of Harris’s plan is the creation of a...

By Nia Heard-Garris, Kaitlyn Ann Sacotte, Tyler N. A. Winkelman, et al., JAMA Network, September 4, 2019 Question: Is a childhood history of parental incarceration and juvenile justice involvement associated with mental health conditions in early adulthood? Findings: In this nationally representative cross-sectional study, young adults with a history of both parental incarceration and juvenile justice involvement reported more mental health conditions compared with peers with no justice...